Tolerance and Diversity Institute

News

Dec/1728

Discussion: Religious Dialogue in Georgian and International Context

On December 22, 2017 Tolerance and Diversity Institute (TDI) organized a discussion Religious Dialogue in Georgian and International Context. The event was held at the Information Center on NATO and EU.

In her welcome speech Mariam Gavtadze - member of TDI’s board of directors, noted that the aim of the event is to share the best practices of cooperation between religious associations, to promote interreligious dialogue and support constructive discussions.

Nino Bolkvadze, Director of Information Center on NATO and EU spoke about the active work of the Center aimed at informing the clergy about the European integration process.

Bishop of Evangelical-Baptist Church Malkhaz Songhulashvili presented a speech on the topic "International Experience of Interreligious Dialogue - Paradigm Change: From Luxury to Needs". He reviewed the history of ecumenical cooperation among Christian churches, spoke about the experience of dialogue among different religions, emphasized the perspective of close cooperation between religions that should be based not on theological postulates, but on the common ethical principles.

Director of the Center for Democracy and Development, Ketevan Chachava drew attention to the experience of civil society organizations in promoting religious dialogue, overviewed the visits of Orthodox Church bishops to the Euro-Atlantic institutions, meetings of interreligious group in the USA, underlined importance of such visits and activities in supporting Georgia’s Western integration, emphasized the necessity of expanding the borders of interreligious dialogue.

Beka Mindiashvili, head of the Tolerance Center under the auspices of the Public Defender of Georgia, spoke about the history of establishing the Council of Religions, overviewed the form and content of the Council that determines successful cooperation between various religious organizations.

The discussion was organized by the Tolerance and Diversity Institute (TDI), through the support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) within “Promoting Integration, Tolerance and Awareness Program in Georgia” [PITA], implemented by the UN Association of Georgia (UNAG).